UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, DC 20549

 


 

FORM 8-K

 

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

 

Date of report (Date of earliest event reported): June 7, 2017

 

Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

 

Delaware

 

001-31918

 

04-3072298

(State or Other Jurisdiction of
Incorporation)

 

(Commission File Number)

 

(IRS Employer
Identification No.)

 

167 Sidney Street
Cambridge, Massachusetts

 

02139

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

 

(Zip Code)

 

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (617) 679-5500

 

 

(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

 

o                  Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

o                  Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

 

o                  Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

 

o                  Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

 

Emerging growth company  o

 

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.  o

 

 

 



 

Item 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

 

Amendment to 2013 Stock Incentive Plan

 

At the 2017 annual meeting of stockholders of Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (the “Company”) held on June 7, 2017 (the “Annual Meeting”), the Company’s stockholders approved an amendment (the “Stock Plan Amendment”) to the Company’s 2013 Stock Incentive Plan (the “2013 Plan”) to:

 

·                   increase the number of shares of common stock authorized for issuance under the 2013 Plan by 10,000,000 shares; and

 

·                   provide that dividends declared on unvested shares of common stock under an other stock-based award will only be paid when the restrictions on such shares have lapsed.

 

The Stock Plan Amendment had previously been approved by the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”), subject to stockholder approval.

 

The following brief description of the 2013 Plan, as amended by the Stock Plan Amendment, is qualified in its entirety by reference to (i) the complete text of the 2013 Plan, a copy of which is attached as Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 13, 2014, (ii) the complete text of an earlier amendment to the 2013 Plan, a copy of which is attached as Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 11, 2015, and (iii)  the complete text of the Stock Plan Amendment, a copy of which is attached hereto as Exhibit 10.1, each of which is incorporated herein by reference.

 

After giving effect to the Stock Plan Amendment, the 2013 Plan allows for the issuance of up to 25,224,460 shares of the Company’s common stock plus such additional number of shares of common stock (up to 6,946,978) as is equal to the sum of the number of shares of common stock subject to awards granted under the Company’s 2005 Stock Incentive Plan or the Company’s 2008 Stock Incentive Plan which awards expire, terminate or are otherwise surrendered, cancelled, forfeited or repurchased by the Company at their original issuance price pursuant to a contractual repurchase right.

 

The 2013 Stock Incentive Plan allows for the issuance of incentive stock options intended to qualify under Section 422 of Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), nonstatutory stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, other stock-based awards and performance awards.  Employees, officers, directors, consultants and advisors of the Company and of its future parent or subsidiary corporations and any other business venture in which the Company has a controlling interest (as determined by the Board) are eligible to be granted awards under the 2013 Plan. However, incentive stock options may only be granted to employees of the Company, employees of the Company’s present or future parent or subsidiary corporations, and employees of any other entities the employees of which are eligible to receive incentive stock options under the Code. The Board has authorized the compensation committee to administer certain aspects of the 2013 Plan, including the granting of awards to directors and executive officers. In addition, as permitted by the terms of the 2013 Plan, the Board has delegated to the Company’s Chief Executive Officer the authority to grant equity awards to non-executive employees in accordance with guidelines established by the compensation committee of the Board.

 

Adoption of 2017 Employee Stock Purchase Plan

 

At the Annual Meeting, the Company’s stockholders approved the Company’s 2017 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “2017 ESPP”), which is intended to qualify as an “employee stock purchase plan” as defined in Section 423 of the Code.  The 2017 ESPP had previously been approved by the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”), subject to stockholder approval.

 

The following brief description of the 2017 ESPP is qualified in its entirety by reference to the complete text of the 2017 ESPP, a copy of which is attached hereto as Exhibit 10.2 and is incorporated herein by reference.

 

The 2017 ESPP will be administered by the Board or by a committee appointed by the Board. The 2017 ESPP initially will provide participating employees with the opportunity to purchase an aggregate of 500,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, subject to adjustment in connection with certain changes in capitalization and reorganization events.  All of the Company’s employees and employees of any of the Company’s designated subsidiaries, as defined in the 2017 ESPP, are eligible to participate in the 2017

 

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ESPP, provided that: (i) such person is customarily employed by the Company or its designated subsidiary for more than 20 hours a week and for more than five months in a calendar year; (ii) such person has been employed by the Company or by its designated subsidiary for at least three months prior to enrolling in the 2017 ESPP; and (iii) such person was an employee of the Company or an employee of its designated subsidiary on the first day of the applicable offering period under the 2017 ESPP.  The Company expects to make one or more offerings to its eligible employees to purchase stock under the 2017 ESPP beginning at such time as the Board may determine. Each offering will consist of a specified offering period during which payroll deductions will be made and held for the purchase of the Company’s common stock at the end of the offering period. The Board may, at its discretion, choose an offering period of 12 months or less for offerings. An eligible employee may authorize up to a maximum of 10% of his or her compensation to be deducted by the Company during the offering period. The purchase price shall be determined by the Board for each offering period and will be at least 85% of the applicable closing price of the Company’s common stock. If the Board does not make a determination of the purchase price, the purchase price will be 85% of the lesser of the closing price of the common stock on the first business day of the offering period or on the last business day of the offering period. The 2017 ESPP may be terminated at any time by the Board. Upon termination, the Company will refund all amounts in the accounts of participating employees.

 

The 2017 ESPP, which is intended to replace the Company’s 1995 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “1995 ESPP”), became effective as of June 7, 2017, however, the Company will not begin offerings under the 2017 ESPP until the completion of the currently-ongoing offering period under the 1995 ESPP on or about August 31, 2017, at which point the 1995 ESPP will terminate.

 

Item 5.07. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders.

 

At the Annual Meeting, the Company’s stockholders voted in the following manner with respect to the following proposals:

 

1. The following nominees were elected to the Board as Class I directors for terms expiring at the 2020 annual meeting of stockholders.

 

 

 

For

 

Withheld

 

Broker Non-
Votes

 

Vincent Milano

 

67,453,352

 

871,695

 

51,586,566

 

Dr. Kelvin Neu

 

67,461,313

 

863,734

 

51,586,566

 

William Reardon

 

67,596,742

 

728,305

 

51,586,566

 

 

The terms of the following directors continued after the Annual Meeting:

 

James A. Geraghty

Julian C. Baker

Dr. Maxine Gowen

Youssef El Zein

Dr. Mark Goldberg

 

2. A non-binding, advisory proposal on the compensation of the Company’s named executive officers was approved.

 

For:

66,663,418

Against:

1,486,089

Abstain:

175,540

Broker Non-Votes:

51,586,566

 

3. The stockholders recommended, in a non-binding, advisory vote, that future advisory votes on the compensation of the Company’s named executive officers be held every year.

 

One Year:

 

64,830,544

 

Two Years:

 

317,035

 

Three Years:

 

2,942,293

 

Abstain:

 

235,175

 

Broker Non-Votes:

 

51,586,566

 

 

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After taking into consideration the foregoing voting results and the Board’s prior recommendation in favor of an annual advisory vote on the compensation of the Company’s named executive officers, the Board intends to hold future advisory votes on the compensation of the Company’s named executive officers every year.

 

4. The Stock Plan Amendment was approved.

 

 

 

 

 

For:

 

64,297,347

 

Against:

 

3,847,687

 

Abstain:

 

180,013

 

Broker Non-Votes:

 

51,586,566

 

 

5. The 2017 ESPP was approved.

 

For:

 

67,472,325

 

Against:

 

717,963

 

Abstain:

 

134,759

 

Broker Non-Votes:

 

51,586,566

 

 

6. The appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as the independent registered public accounting firm for the Company for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2017 was ratified.

 

For:

 

117,467,982

 

Against:

 

1,656,868

 

Abstain:

 

786,763

 

Broker Non-Votes:

 

0

 

 

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(d)  Exhibits

 

See attached Exhibit Index.

 

SIGNATURE

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

 

 

Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

 

 

Date: June 9, 2017

By:

/s/ Mark J. Casey

 

 

Mark J. Casey
Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

 

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EXHIBIT INDEX

 

Exhibit No.

 

Description

 

 

 

10.1

 

Amendment to Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended

 

 

 

10.2

 

Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2017 Employee Stock Purchase Plan

 

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Exhibit 10.1

 

AMENDMENT TO

 

IDERA PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

 

2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN, AS AMENDED

 

WHEREAS, Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (the “Company”) desires to amend the Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended (the “2013 Plan”), in the manner set forth below (the “Amendment”); and

 

WHEREAS, on March 7, 2017, subject to stockholder approval, the Board of Directors of the Company approved the Amendment.

 

NOW THEREFORE, in accordance with Section 11(d) of the 2013 Plan, the 2013 Plan is hereby amended as follows:

 

1.               Section 4(a) of the 2013 Plan is hereby amended by deleting subsection (1) thereof in its entirety and substituting the following in lieu thereof:

 

“(1)                            Authorized Number of Shares . Subject to adjustment under Section 9, Awards may be made under the Plan, any or all of which Awards may be in the form of Incentive Stock Options (as defined in Section 5(b)), for up to such number of shares of common stock, $0.001 par value per share, of the Company (the “ Common Stock ”) as is equal to the sum of:

 

(A) 25,224,460 shares of Common Stock; plus

 

(B) such additional number of shares of Common Stock (up to 6,946,978 shares) as is equal to the sum of the number of shares of Common Stock subject to awards granted under the Company’s 2005 Stock Incentive Plan (the “ 2005 Plan ”) or the Company’s 2008 Stock Incentive Plan (the “ 2008 Plan ” and, together with the 2005 Plan, the “ Existing Plans ”) which awards expire, terminate or are otherwise surrendered, canceled, forfeited or repurchased by the Company at their original issuance price pursuant to a contractual repurchase right (subject, however, in the case of Incentive Stock Options to any limitations of the Code).

 

Shares issued under the Plan may consist in whole or in part of authorized but unissued shares or treasury shares.”

 

2.               Section 8(b) of the 2013 Plan is hereby amended by deleting the second sentence thereof in its entirety.

 

3.               New Sections 8(c) and 8(d) shall be added to the 2013 Plan, as follows:

 

“(c)  Dividends . Unless otherwise provided in the applicable Award agreement, any dividends (whether paid in cash, stock or property) declared and paid by the Company with respect to shares of Common Stock granted under an Other Stock-Based Award shall be paid to the Participant only if and when such shares become free from the restrictions on transferability and forfeitability that apply to such shares. Each payment of any such accrued dividends will be made no later than

 



 

the end of the calendar year in which the dividends are paid to stockholders of that class of stock or, if later, the 15th day of the third month following the lapsing of the restrictions on transferability and the forfeitability provisions applicable to the underlying Other Stock-Based Award.

 

(d)  Dividend Equivalents . The Award agreement for Other Stock-Based Awards may provide Participants with the right to receive Dividend Equivalents. Dividend Equivalents will be subject to the same restrictions on transfer and forfeitability as the Other Stock-Based Awards with respect to which such Dividend Equivalents were granted.”

 

The Amendment shall be effective upon approval of the stockholders of the Company at the Company’s 2017 annual meeting of stockholders and shall only be applicable with respect to Awards granted after such approval. If the Amendment is not so approved at such meeting, then the amendment to the 2013 Plan set forth herein shall be void ab initio.

 

Except as herein above provided, the 2013 Plan is hereby ratified, confirmed and approved in all respects.

 


Exhibit 10.2

 

 IDERA PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

 

2017 EMPLOYEE STOCK PURCHASE PLAN

 

The purpose of this Plan is to provide eligible employees of Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (the “Company”) and certain of its subsidiaries with opportunities to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock, $0.001 par value (the “Common Stock”).  Five hundred thousand (500,000) shares of Common Stock in the aggregate have been approved for this purpose, subject to any adjustment pursuant to Section 15 hereof.  This Plan is intended to qualify as an “employee stock purchase plan” as defined in Section 423 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and the regulations issued thereunder, and shall be interpreted consistent therewith.

 

1.                                       Administration .  The Plan will be administered by the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) or by a Committee appointed by the Board (the “Committee”).  The Board or the Committee has authority to make rules and regulations for the administration of the Plan and its interpretation and decisions with regard thereto shall be final and conclusive.

 

2.                                       Eligibility .  All employees of the Company and all employees of any subsidiary of the Company (as defined in Section 424(f) of the Code) designated by the Board or the Committee from time to time (a “Designated Subsidiary”), are eligible to participate in any one or more of the offerings of Options (as defined in Section 9) to purchase Common Stock under the Plan provided that:

 

(a)                                  they are customarily employed by the Company or a Designated Subsidiary for more than 20 hours a week and for more than five months in a calendar year;

 

(b)                                  they have been employed by the Company or a Designated Subsidiary for at least three months prior to enrolling in the Plan; and

 

(c)                                   they are employees of the Company or a Designated Subsidiary on the first day of the applicable Plan Period (as defined below).

 

No employee may be granted an Option hereunder if such employee, immediately after the Option is granted, owns 5% or more of the total combined voting power or value of the stock of the Company or any subsidiary.  For purposes of the preceding sentence, the attribution rules of Section 424(d) of the Code shall apply in determining the stock ownership of an employee, and all stock that the employee has a contractual right to purchase shall be treated as stock owned by the employee.

 

The Company retains the discretion to determine which eligible employees may participate in an offering pursuant to and consistent with Treasury Regulation Sections 1.423-2(e) and (f).

 

3.                                       Offerings .  The Company will make one or more offerings (“Offerings”) to employees to purchase stock under this Plan.  Offerings will begin on the dates determined by the Board or the Committee or the first business day thereafter (the “Offering Commencement

 

1



 

Dates”).  Each Offering Commencement Date will begin a plan period (a “Plan Period”) during which payroll deductions will be made and held for the purchase of Common Stock at the end of the Plan Period.  The Board or the Committee may, at its discretion, choose a Plan Period of twelve (12) months or less for subsequent Offerings and/or choose a different commencement date for Offerings under the Plan.

 

4.                                       Participation .  An employee eligible on the Offering Commencement Date of any Offering may participate in such Offering by completing and forwarding either a written or electronic payroll deduction authorization form to the employee’s appropriate payroll office at least 14 days prior to the applicable Offering Commencement Date.  The form will authorize a regular payroll deduction from the Compensation received by the employee during the Plan Period.  Unless an employee files a new form or withdraws from the Plan, his or her deductions and purchases will continue at the same rate for future Offerings under the Plan as long as the Plan remains in effect.  The term “Compensation” means the amount of money reportable on the employee’s Federal Income Tax Withholding Statement, excluding overtime, shift premium, incentive or bonus awards, allowances and reimbursements for expenses such as relocation allowances for travel expenses, income or gains associated with the grant or vesting of restricted stock, income or gains on the exercise of Company stock options or stock appreciation rights, and similar items, whether or not shown or separately identified on the employee’s Federal Income Tax Withholding Statement, but including, in the case of salespersons, sales commissions to the extent determined by the Board or the Committee.

 

5.                                       Deductions .  The Company will maintain payroll deduction accounts for all participating employees.  With respect to any Offering made under this Plan, an employee may authorize a payroll deduction in any dollar amount up to a maximum of 10% of the Compensation he or she receives during the Plan Period or such shorter period during which deductions from payroll are made.  Payroll deductions may be at the rate of 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9% or 10% of Compensation with any change in compensation during the Plan Period to result in an automatic corresponding change in the dollar amount withheld.  The minimum payroll deduction is such percentage of Compensation as may be established from time to time by the Board or the Committee.

 

6.                                       Deduction Changes .  An employee may decrease or discontinue his or her payroll deduction once during any Plan Period, by filing either a written or electronic new payroll deduction authorization form.  However, an employee may not increase his or her payroll deduction during a Plan Period.  If an employee elects to discontinue his or her payroll deductions during a Plan Period, but does not elect to withdraw his or her funds pursuant to Section 8 hereof, funds deducted prior to his or her election to discontinue will be applied to the purchase of Common Stock on the Exercise Date (as defined below).

 

7.                                       Interest .  Interest will not be paid on any employee accounts, except to the extent that the Board or the Committee, in its sole discretion, elects to credit employee accounts with interest at such rate as it may from time to time determine.

 

8.                                       Withdrawal of Funds .  An employee may at any time prior to the close of business on the last business day in a Plan Period and for any reason permanently draw out the balance accumulated in the employee’s account and thereby withdraw from participation in an Offering.

 

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Partial withdrawals are not permitted.  The employee may not begin participation again during the remainder of the Plan Period during which the employee withdrew his or her balance.  The employee may participate in any subsequent Offering in accordance with terms and conditions established by the Board or the Committee.

 

9.                                      Purchase of Shares .

 

(a)                                  Number of Shares .                                            On the Offering Commencement Date of each Plan Period, the Company will grant to each eligible employee who is then a participant in the Plan an option (an “Option”) to purchase on the last business day of such Plan Period (the “Exercise Date”) at the applicable purchase price (the “Option Price”) up to a whole number of shares of Common Stock determined by multiplying $2,083 by the number of full months in the Plan Period and dividing the result by the closing price (as determined below) on the Offering Commencement Date; provided, however, that no employee may be granted an Option which permits his or her rights to purchase Common Stock under this Plan and any other employee stock purchase plan (as defined in Section 423(b) of the Code) of the Company and its subsidiaries, to accrue at a rate which exceeds $25,000 of the fair market value of such Common Stock (determined at the date such Option is granted) for each calendar year in which the Option is outstanding at any time.

 

(b)                                  Option Price .                            The Board or the Committee shall determine the Option Price for each Plan Period, including whether such Option Price shall be determined based on the lesser of the closing price of the Common Stock on (i) the first business day of the Plan Period or (ii) the Exercise Date, or shall be based solely on the closing price of the Common Stock on the Exercise Date; provided, however, that such Option Price shall be at least 85% of the applicable closing price.   In the absence of a determination by the Board or the Committee, the Option Price will be 85% of the lesser of the closing price of the Common Stock on (i) the first business day of the Plan Period and (ii) the Exercise Date.  The closing price shall be (a) the closing price (for the primary trading session) on any national securities exchange on which the Common Stock is listed or (b) the average of the closing bid and asked prices in the over-the-counter-market, whichever is applicable, as published in The Wall Street Journal or another source selected by the Board or the Committee.  If no sales of Common Stock were made on such a day, the price of the Common Stock shall be the reported price for the next preceding day on which sales were made.

 

(c)                                   Exercise of Option .                                          Each employee who continues to be a participant in the Plan on the Exercise Date shall be deemed to have exercised his or her Option at the Option Price on such date and shall be deemed to have purchased from the Company the number of whole shares of Common Stock reserved for the purpose of the Plan that his or her accumulated payroll deductions on such date will pay for, but not in excess of the maximum numbers determined in the manner set forth above.

 

(d)                                  Return of Unused Payroll Deductions .  Any balance remaining in an employee’s payroll deduction account at the end of a Plan Period will be automatically refunded to the employee, except that any balance that is less than the purchase price of one share of Common Stock will be carried forward into the employee’s payroll deduction account for the

 

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following Offering, unless the employee elects not to participate in the following Offering under the Plan, in which case the balance in the employee’s account shall be refunded.

 

10.                               Issuance of Certificates .  Certificates representing shares of Common Stock purchased under the Plan may be issued only in the name of the employee, in the name of the employee and another person of legal age as joint tenants with rights of survivorship, or (in the Company’s sole discretion) in the name of a brokerage firm, bank, or other nominee holder designated by the employee.  The Company may, in its sole discretion and in compliance with applicable laws, authorize the use of book entry registration of shares in lieu of issuing stock certificates.

 

11.                               Rights on Retirement, Death or Termination of Employment .  If a participating employee’s employment ends before the last business day of a Plan Period, no payroll deduction shall be taken from any pay then due and owing to the employee and the balance in the employee’s account shall be paid to the employee.  In the event of the employee’s death before the last business day of a Plan Period, the Company shall, upon notification of such death, pay the balance of the employee’s account (a) to the executor or administrator of the employee’s estate or (b) if no such executor or administrator has been appointed to the knowledge of the Company, to such other person(s) as the Company may, in its discretion, designate.  If, before the last business day of the Plan Period, the Designated Subsidiary by which an employee is employed ceases to be a subsidiary of the Company, or if the employee is transferred to a subsidiary of the Company that is not a Designated Subsidiary, the employee shall be deemed to have terminated employment for the purposes of this Plan.

 

12.                               Optionees Not Stockholders .  Neither the granting of an Option to an employee nor the deductions from his or her pay shall make such employee a stockholder of the shares of Common Stock covered by an Option under this Plan until he or she has purchased and received such shares.

 

13.                               Options Not Transferable .  Options under this Plan are not transferable by a participating employee other than by will or the laws of descent and distribution, and are exercisable during the employee’s lifetime only by the employee.

 

14.                               Application of Funds .  All funds received or held by the Company under this Plan may be combined with other corporate funds and may be used for any corporate purpose.

 

15.                               Adjustment for Changes in Common Stock and Certain Other Events.

 

(a)                                  Changes in Capitalization .  In the event of any stock split, reverse stock split, stock dividend, recapitalization, combination of shares, reclassification of shares, spin-off or other similar change in capitalization or event, or any dividend or distribution to holders of Common Stock other than an ordinary cash dividend, (i) the number and class of securities available under this Plan, (ii) the share limitations set forth in Section 9, and (iii) the Option Price shall be equitably adjusted to the extent determined by the Board or the Committee.

 

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(b)                                  Reorganization Events .

 

(1)                                 Definition .  A “Reorganization Event” shall mean:  (a) any merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another entity as a result of which all of the Common Stock of the Company is converted into or exchanged for the right to receive cash, securities or other property or is cancelled, (b) any transfer or disposition of all of the Common Stock of the Company for cash, securities or other property pursuant to a share exchange or other transaction or (c) any liquidation or dissolution of the Company.

 

(2)                                 Consequences of a Reorganization Event on Options .  In connection with a Reorganization Event, the Board or the Committee may take any one or more of the following actions as to outstanding Options on such terms as the Board or the Committee determines:  (i) provide that Options shall be assumed, or substantially equivalent Options shall be substituted, by the acquiring or succeeding corporation (or an affiliate thereof), (ii) upon written notice to employees, provide that all outstanding Options will be terminated immediately prior to the consummation of such Reorganization Event and that all such outstanding Options will become exercisable to the extent of accumulated payroll deductions as of a date specified by the Board or the Committee in such notice, which date shall not be less than ten (10) days preceding the effective date of the Reorganization Event, (iii) upon written notice to employees, provide that all outstanding Options will be cancelled as of a date prior to the effective date of the Reorganization Event and that all accumulated payroll deductions will be returned to participating employees on such date, (iv) in the event of a Reorganization Event under the terms of which holders of Common Stock will receive upon consummation thereof a cash payment for each share surrendered in the Reorganization Event (the “Acquisition Price”), change the last day of the Plan Period to be the date of the consummation of the Reorganization Event and make or provide for a cash payment to each employee equal to (A) (i) the Acquisition Price times (ii) the number of shares of Common Stock that the employee’s accumulated payroll deductions as of immediately prior to the Reorganization Event could purchase at the Option Price, where the Acquisition Price is treated as the fair market value of the Common Stock on the last day of the applicable Plan Period for purposes of determining the Option Price under Section 9(b) hereof, and where the number of shares that could be purchased is subject to the limitations set forth in Section 9(a), minus (B) the result of multiplying such number of shares by such Option Price, (v) provide that, in connection with a liquidation or dissolution of the Company, Options shall convert into the right to receive liquidation proceeds (net of the Option Price thereof) and (vi) any combination of the foregoing.

 

For purposes of clause (i) above, an Option shall be considered assumed if, following consummation of the Reorganization Event, the Option confers the right to purchase, for each share of Common Stock subject to the Option immediately prior to the consummation of the Reorganization Event, the consideration (whether cash, securities or other property) received as a result of the Reorganization Event by holders of Common Stock for each share of Common Stock held immediately prior to the consummation of the Reorganization Event (and if holders were offered a choice of consideration, the type of consideration chosen by the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Common Stock); provided, however, that if the consideration received as a result of the Reorganization Event is not solely common stock of the acquiring or succeeding corporation (or an affiliate thereof), the Company may, with the consent of the acquiring or succeeding corporation, provide for the consideration to be received upon the exercise of Options to consist solely of such number of shares of common stock of the acquiring

 

5



 

or succeeding corporation (or an affiliate thereof) that the Board determines to be equivalent in value (as of the date of such determination or another date specified by the Board) to the per share consideration received by holders of outstanding shares of Common Stock as a result of the Reorganization Event.

 

16.                               Amendment of the Plan .  The Board may at any time, and from time to time, amend or suspend this Plan or any portion thereof, except that (a) if the approval of any such amendment by the shareholders of the Company is required by Section 423 of the Code, such amendment shall not be effected without such approval, and (b) in no event may any amendment be made that would cause the Plan to fail to comply with Section 423 of the Code.

 

17.                               Insufficient Shares .  If the total number of shares of Common Stock specified in elections to be purchased under any Offering plus the number of shares purchased under previous Offerings under this Plan exceeds the maximum number of shares issuable under this Plan, the Board or the Committee will allot the shares then available on a pro-rata basis.

 

18.                               Termination of the Plan .  This Plan may be terminated at any time by the Board.  Upon termination of this Plan all amounts in the accounts of participating employees shall be promptly refunded.

 

19.                               Governmental Regulations .  The Company’s obligation to sell and deliver Common Stock under this Plan is subject to listing on a national stock exchange (to the extent the Common Stock is then so listed or quoted) and the approval of all governmental authorities required in connection with the authorization, issuance or sale of such stock.

 

20.                               Governing Law .  The Plan shall be governed by Delaware law except to the extent that such law is preempted by federal law.

 

21.                               Issuance of Shares .  Shares may be issued upon exercise of an Option from authorized but unissued Common Stock, from shares held in the treasury of the Company, or from any other proper source.

 

22.                               Notification upon Sale of Shares .  Each employee agrees, by entering the Plan, to promptly give the Company notice of any disposition of shares purchased under the Plan where such disposition occurs within two years after the date of grant of the Option pursuant to which such shares were purchased.

 

23 .                               Grants to Employees in Foreign Jurisdictions .  The Company may, to comply with the laws of a foreign jurisdiction, grant Options to employees of the Company or a Designated Subsidiary who are citizens or residents of such foreign jurisdiction (without regard to whether they are also citizens of the United States or resident aliens (within the meaning of Section 7701(b)(1)(A) of the Code)) with terms that are less favorable (but not more favorable) than the terms of Options granted under the Plan to employees of the Company or a Designated Subsidiary who are resident in the United States.  Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Plan, employees of the Company or a Designated Subsidiary who are citizens or residents of a foreign jurisdiction (without regard to whether they are also citizens of the United States or resident aliens (within the meaning of Section 7701(b)(1)(A) of the Code)) may be excluded from eligibility under the Plan if (a) the grant of an Option under the Plan to a citizen or resident

 

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of the foreign jurisdiction is prohibited under the laws of such jurisdiction or (b) compliance with the laws of the foreign jurisdiction would cause the Plan to violate the requirements of Section 423 of the Code.  The Company may add one or more appendices to this Plan describing the operation of the Plan in those foreign jurisdictions in which employees are excluded from participation or granted less favorable Options.

 

25.                                Authorization of Sub-Plans .  The Board may from time to time establish one or more sub-plans under the Plan with respect to one or more Designated Subsidiaries, provided that such sub-plan complies with Section 423 of the Code.

 

26.                                Withholding .  If applicable tax laws impose a tax withholding obligation, each affected employee shall, no later than the date of the event creating the tax liability, make provision satisfactory to the Board for payment of any taxes required by law to be withheld in connection with any transaction related to Options granted to or shares acquired by such employee pursuant to the Plan.  The Company may, to the extent permitted by law, deduct any such taxes from any payment of any kind otherwise due to an employee.

 

27.                                Effective Date and Approval of Shareholders .  The Plan shall take effect on June 7, 2017 subject to approval by the shareholders of the Company as required by Section 423 of the Code, which approval must occur within twelve months of the adoption of the Plan by the Board.

 

 

Adopted by the Board of Directors

 

 

 

on March 7, 2017

 

 

 

Approved by the stockholders on

 

June 7, 2017

 

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